The University of Manitoba (UM) needed a roadmap that would connect their ambitious climate targets with the reality of renewing and growing a large, complex portfolio on their Fort Garry Campus. While UM has existing plans for updating campus buildings, they wanted to plan investment in energy systems and infrastructure to reduce emissions and maintain resiliency.
UM asked our team to build on our previous master facilities plan work and carry our understanding of their long-term campus vision into energy and infrastructure planning. We are serving as the technical and strategic decarbonization advisor, helping UM move from high-level climate commitments to a defensible implementation pathway.
UM has committed to reducing Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gases (GHGs) by 50 percent by 2030 and reaching net zero by 2050. But with aging district energy infrastructure, significant heating demands, and limited electrical capacity, they can’t simply electrify. UM wants a credible pathway to meet their climate commitments while maintaining reliability and resilience. This requires a strategy for coordinating building renovations, infrastructure investment, and decarbonization.
We are conducting a detailed assessment of existing campus energy systems and emissions sources. Our work includes developing the energy and GHG baseline, analyzing the building portfolio, reviewing district energy and campus infrastructure, and evaluating conservation and low-carbon technologies. With technical analysis, we’ll turn this assessment into actionable implementation. We are also developing whole-campus decarbonization scenarios and analyzing those pathways for life cycle cost and feasibility.
The resulting phased, practical roadmap will give UM several options for implementation and guide them through 2050 and their targeted emissions reductions.
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